“What the fuck, Page? We have four more songs.”
I close my eyes and take a deep, calming breath. Without breaking eye contact with Josie, I say, “Not tonight, Layla, my wife is here.” I realize my mistake when Josie turns rigid in my hands and tries to step back. I shouldn’t have said Layla’s name. She’s seen the pictures of us together and has already questioned if I’m in love with her.
I don’t know what she’s put together in her mind, but I have a feeling I’ll be paying for it later.
“Well, are you going to introduce me?” Layla demands. Without even looking at her I know her hands are on her hips and her foot is tapping.
Reluctantly, I drop my hands from Josie’s face and set one on her hip. “Layla, this is my wife, Josie.”
“It’s nice to finally meet you,” Layla says, stepping forward and shaking Josie’s hand. “I’ve heard so much about you.”
“Funny, Liam hasn’t told me a single thing about you.” Layla’s face drops. She doesn’t deserve to be treated harshly by Josie, but I know better than to correct her right now.
“Ah, shit,” JD mutters in the background as he watches the scene unfold in front of him.
“Josie, did Katelyn happen to come with you?” Harrison asks, trying to diffuse the ticking time bomb that’s about to explode.
“Sorry, Harrison. This was a spur of the moment trip, but I saw her and the kids today. Everyone is good.” He nods, and pulls out his cell phone to call home, I assume. He’s good like that, so is JD. Me, I sulk and take care of business before I call home because I don’t want to interrupt Josie at work even though I know she’d stop what she’s doing to talk to me.
I turn back to Josie, ignoring Layla. “Wanna get out of here?”
“I don’t know, are you allowed to leave?”
I fight every urge I have to roll my eyes. “I’m allowed to do whatever I want.”
Josie seems to be in agreement that it’s time to leave. “We’ll take a cab, right, since you’ve been drinking?”
I purse my lips and nod. I take her hand in my mine and grab her suitcase with my other one as we head toward the door.
“Liam, what about our set? They’re waiting for us!” Layla hollers after me.
“Not tonight,” I say again as I push the backdoor open and step out into the night air.
This was a mistake. I’m not prepared for the onslaught of people lined up to get into the club. It only takes one person to recognize me and scream out my name. Luckily, I’m able to grab the door before it closes and I push Josie back in, pulling the door shut behind us.
“Sorry.”
“For what? It’s your life, right? Isn’t this what you want?”
My wife is a fucking angry firecracker right now, and she’s testing me.
“I enjoy it, yes.”
“But not with me?”
I squint my eyes in confusion. “What?”
She points to the door. “Why can’t you show people who I am? Do you have any idea how humiliating it was to wait out front and beg the security guard to let me in? He didn’t believe I was your wife because no one has ever seen us together.”
“I do it to protect you and Noah.”
Josie crosses her arms over her chest. “Noah’s not here and we’re not at home. When you have the opportunity to showcase, you don’t.”
This woman infuriates me. She doesn’t want to be a part of this side of my life, but wants people to see us together? I can’t fucking win.
“Fine. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
I grab her hand and bag and push the door open. This time they’re waiting. They know we have to come out of the door and everyone is there waiting for us, both fans and paparazzi. Between the screams for my name, the hands grabbing me and the light bulbs going off, I’m disoriented.
Josie clutches the back of my shirt with her freehand, a move she’s done many times back when we were younger. I loved it then and I love it now. I keep her close, and can feel her knees bumping into her suitcase.
My name is yelled and questions are tossed out. Who is she? What about Layla? Did I file for divorce? They’re in luck tonight because I’ll actually answer a question for them.
As luck would have it, there’s a waiting cab that we rush to. I open the door and Josie slides in. I should follow her, but I stop to turn and face everyone instead.
“To answer your question, the woman with me tonight is my wife. As for Layla, she and I are friends. Nothing more.”